The Axe Murderer!-part 2
by Vince1976
Summary: The case takes on a disturbing twist when Banks learns that Roger Walker knew about Mrs Walker s affair with Mr White. Did Roger see Mrs Walker being killed or is he the killer? Banks and his team dig deeper into the disappearance of Mrs Walker and her affair with Mr White for answers. Things get worse when DI Annie Cabbot is taken hostage.


I don't own DCI Banks. DCI Alan Banks is the creation of Canadian mystery writer Peter Robinson.

Chapter One

Roger Walker was looking out his kitchen window into the night. A bright big full moon shone brightly in the sky. There were hundreds of stars. _This is a good night for the undead to be out_ Roger thought. He thought he saw a figure move through the darkness. The figure seemed not to notice Roger watching. Roger felt a cold chill run down his spine. He was sure the figure in the dark was the undead. He went and picked up the telephone and called the police.

"There is someone or something wondering around outside" Roger whispered "I am scared"

Roger hung up and took a knife from the knife block on the counter. He was not sure if a knife would help against the undead but it made him feel safe.

A car pulled up to the police tape and a young couple got out. The young woman looked around with frightened blue eyes.

"Billy" she said "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Come on Sandy" Billy said, "There is nothing to be afraid of. The only person here is this man who is so out of it he would not hurt a fly"

"There have been several murders in this area. They say it is that man who killed his family"

"Do not believe everything you hear Sandy. People make up stories like that just to shock you. There is not truth to these rumours"

"What if you are wrong Billy?"

"I do not believe those stories"

"What about the two reporters who were killed?"

"The police have a suspect now come on"

Sandy followed Billy under the police tape. She glanced nervously at the clouds that were moving across the moon. This was the type of night the killer would be out. She believed he was out here somewhere in the darkness waiting for his next victim. Sandy thought she heard footsteps behind her.

"Billy" she whispered, "Someone is behind us"

"Don't be an idiot Sandy" Billy said, "There is noone out here"

The footsteps got closer. Sandy looked behind her and thought she saw what looked like a tall shape.

"Billy" she said, "I am not imagining things. There is someone behind us"

Billy turned just in time to see an axe come at his head.

Chapter Two

A police car pulled up in front of Roger's front door. Two PC`s got out and went to knock on the door. Roger nervously peered out at the officers.

"Mr Walker" the male PC said, "I am PC Wilkins and this is PC Smith. You reported someone wondering around near the crime scene"

"Yes I thought I saw something wondering around in the darkness," Roger said.

"Do not worry sir" PC Smith said, "We will check it out. It is probably nothing"

"I don't call the undead anything"

The two PC`s gave Roger a strange look. They were wondering if this man was a little strange. They chuckled softly to themselves as they took out flashlights from the car. The two PC`s had not gotten very far when they came across the bodies of the young couple chopped into pieces.

"Go and call headquarters!" PC Wilkins yelled to his partner.

PC Smith ran back to the car. She was trying to stay calm but it was hard after seeing the bodies. It was like a scene out a bad horror movie. Just as she picked up the radio PC Smith thought she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She just took it to be her imagination.

"This is PC Smith" she said, "I am at the crime scene. There are two new bodies. We need to have someone out here right away"

Just as PC Smith signed off she suddenly noticed that it was eerie quiet.

"Bob?" PC Smith called out "Bob?"

PC Wilkins did not answer. PC Smith suddenly felt panicked. Maybe what she saw was not her imagination.

"Bob" PC Smith called again "Bob where are you?"

Just as she turned PC Smith noticed an axe out of the corner of her eye. She barley had time to scream.

Roger heard the awful screams from the two PC`s. He covered his ears because it sounded like the cries of the undead. There was nothing he could do to help the two officers. The undead had gotten to them and were probably ripping them apart. Roger slid down the wall and began to sob.

"Go away" he said, "Please just go away"

Chapter Three

Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks got word that Roger Walker reported an intruder at eight thirty the night before and PC`s Wilkins and Smith went to check. PC Smith radioed in at a quarter to nine that two more bodies had been discovered. Nothing was heard from either PC after that. The scene that greeted Banks the next day was really bad. Four bodies were discovered chopped into pieces. Two of the bodies were the two PC`s.

"What the hell" Banks said as he found the head of the male PC. The officer's light blue eyes were wide with surprise or perhaps horror staring into nothing.

"There are body parts all over the place" Detective Inspector Annie Cabbot said "My god Alan. How can we know which body parts belong to who?"

"This is the worst so far. We need to catch this guy. Mr White knows who it is"

"He refuses to talk Alan"

"Well he will have to talk now Annie. I just about had enough of his attitude"

Just then there was a commotion. Both Annie and Banks turned and noticed a very frightened Roger Walker being dragged by the arm by Detective Sergeant Hatchley. The DS was glaring at the man.

"Look who I found snooping around sir" Hatchley growled.

"Hello again Roger" Banks said "I have been told that you reported an intruder last night. Is that correct?"

"There was something out last night" Roger said "It got those two officers"

"Who was out here last night? Did you see who it was?"

"No who but what. I do not think it was human. No human could do this"

DS Hatchley snorted.

"He is out of his mind sir," he said "Stop with this stupid nonsense of yours and tell us what you saw"

Banks spoke in a soft voice so he would not upset Roger anymore than he already was. The man believed it was something supernatural because it was the only way the poor man could deal with the horror of these murders.

"Roger I know you are frightened" Banks said "I would be too if I saw the things you have seen. There have been several murders and someone is responsible. In order for us to find him or her we need to know what you saw last night"

"I can't" Roger said, "I can't tell you"

"Nothing is going to happen to you Roger. You are safe now. Please tell us what you saw"

Roger turned to DS Hatchley and then back to Banks.

"Alright" he said, "I will talk but only to you"

Roger and Banks sat in Roger's kitchen. Roger kept looking everywhere else but at Banks.

"It is okay Roger" Banks said kindly "We are alone. I promise you are in no danger. Please tell me what you know"

"If I say anything I will be in danger" Roger said in a voice so quiet Banks was not sure he heard him.

"Are you afraid of someone? Is someone threatening you?"

"I have seen the most awful things. I tell myself it can not be real"

"Tell me what you have seen. I must know Roger so I can stop them"

Roger looked at Banks. He seemed to be pleased.

"I saw a figure last night" Roger said "It is the same figure I have seeing the last few months. The figure went after those kind police officers last night. There was nothing I could do. I heard their screams"

"It is okay Roger" Banks said "You did nothing wrong. There was probably nothing you could have done"

"I should have tried to save them. I should have tried to save them just as I should have tried to save her"

Banks suddenly was alert.

"Who are you talking about Roger? Who did you try to save?" Banks asked.

Roger became very quiet.

"Roger please talk to me" Banks pleaded "Who was it you tried to save? Was it your brother's wife?"

"Please I don't want to talk about it. I just want to forget it. There was so much blood. There was too much blood"

"Roger I know this is hard but we need answers. If you know something you have to tell me"

Roger grew more and more silent. Banks stood and left Roger.

Chapter Four

The detectives all sat around the big conference table. The news that there were four bodies had spread fast through the team. What made this really bad was that two of the victims were two of their own which meant the case had just gotten more serious. Detective Superintendent Gristhorpe looked around the table his expression serious.

"All right everyone" he said, "I want to know where we are on this case. I need something to tell the Chief Constable"

Gristhorpe turned to Banks.

"Alan" he said, "What do you have to report?"

"We have talked to Mr White who was Mr Walker's and Mr Regan's boss" Banks said "So far he has not been very helpful"

"In what way?"

"He knew his employees where looking into the story of those murders. I think he may even know who the killer is"

"Why do you think that?"

"He did not want his employees looking into the story"

"Interesting. You may need to bring him in again for another interview"

"Yes sir"

"Anything else"

Annie spoke up.

"Roger Walker may also know something sir" she said, "Alan got the impression that the man is nervous about something"

"Nervous?" Gristhorpe said.

"Yes sir. The man is clearly frightened about something or someone"

"Any idea what he is frightened of?"

"I think he may know what happened to his brother's wife" Banks said, "He may even witnessed her being killed"

"Or he killed her" DS Hatchley snapped.

"What do you mean by that Sergeant?" Gristhorpe demanded.

"He took a shot at DCI Banks and attacked him sir. The man is nuts. He also keeps talking about the undead. I think he may be that axe murderer"

"There is no proof that Roger is a killer Jim" Banks said, "He may have problems but I really do not think he is a killer"

"He attacked you sir. What proof do you need?"

"He was just scared. If you recall Jim he curled up into a ball and wept. Does that sound like a killer to you?"

"How can you defend that crazy man sir?"

Gristhorpe spoke looked from one detective to the other.

"All right you two" he said "Easy"

Gristhorpe felt nervous about the looks that the DCI and sergeant were giving each other. Of all of the detectives at the table DS Hatchley had worked with Banks the longest. They did not need a stupid argument to come between them.

"Why don't you two go and bring Mr White in" Gristhorpe finally said to Hatchley and Banks.

On the way to the newspaper office Hatchley hardly said anything. Banks did not like the silence. The DCI knew he might have overreacted just a little bit. The DS was just trying to protect him. Banks had worked with DS Hatchley too long to let a little disagreement come between them.

"Jim" Banks said, "I am sorry that I overreacted. I know you are just looking out for me. You might be right about Roger"

"I _am_ right about Roger _sir_" Hatchley said between clenched teeth.

Banks sighed as they pulled up in front of the building. They took the elevator to the newspaper office in silence. As the detectives got off the elevator they noticed that the newspaper staff was around the door to Mr White's office.

"What is going on?" Banks asked as he and the sergeant walked over to the crowed near the office door.

A young woman turned towards Banks.

"Mr White has locked himself in his office and he will not come out" the woman said.

Banks knocked on Mr White's office door.

"Mr White" he said "Mr White will you please open your door"

Mr White slowly opened the office door. He looked at Banks as though he did not recognize him. His eyes grew huge when he saw his staff standing behind the Chief Inspector staring at him.

"What are you all looking at?" he snapped, "Get back to work"

Banks turned and read the message on the wall.

"Can you tell me who wrote that Mr White?" he asked.

"It was just someone who was playing a joke," Mr White said trying to laugh it off.

"I say it was someone being very serious. You need to come with me"

"Why?"

"I have just come from a very bad crime scene Mr White. Four more bodies have been discovered and two of them were two of my officers. Are you coming or do I have to drag you there with the help of my sergeant?"

Mr White looked nervously over to the big sergeant and swallowed nervously.

"I will come and I will tell you everything," Mr White said.

Chapter Five

Mr White could feel Banks anger as he sat in the interview room. This time he knew the Chief Inspector was not going to play around. Mr White picked at his fingernails as he met the DCI`s glare.

"First I want to know what happened to James Walker's wife" Banks said.

"I know nothing about that" Mr White said, "All I know is that she left him"

"Come on Mr White. You did not want him to investigate the story because you knew what really happened. I want the truth and no more games"

Mr White bit the edge of his finger.

"The truth is Chief Inspector I was having an affair with James's wife" he said, "The night that she disappeared she was to meet me but she never showed up"

"Did James know about the affair?"

"He suspected she was seeing someone but he had no idea it was me"

"What happened the night she was supposed to meet you?"

"I called her to meet me at the office. We were planning on driving to the train station and then taking a train to London. We had one way plan tickets to the USA"

"Did you suspect something was wrong when she never showed up?"

"No. I just thought James found a away for her to stay with him"

"When did you find out she was missing?"

"James came to my office the next day and told me his wife taken off in the night and he had not heard from her since"

"Did you report it?"

"Yes. I even joined the search but we never found her"

"Did you suspect that she had been murdered?"

"Yes because there had been reports that that axe murderer had escaped"

"Did you tell the police your suspicions?"

"No. There was no body so there was no way to prove she had been murdered"

Banks narrowed his eyes. He sensed Mr White knew more.

"You knew who the killer is that correct Mr White?" he asked.

"I knew of him if that is what you mean" Mr White said.

"No I mean you knew who he was personally"

"No. How could I?"

"You are still holding something back on me. You are going to stay here until you tell me the entire truth"

Chapter Six

Annie was startled when she spotted Banks come marching into the squad room. He started to shout out orders.

"Kevin and Winsome" he said, "I want you to find out all you can about the disappearance and murder of Mr Walker's wife and I mean everything"

"Yes sir" the two DC`s said.

Banks turned to DS Hatchley.

"Jim I want you to find out all you can about Mr White" Banks said "Dig deep into his background"

"What am I looking for sir?" Hatchley asked.

"Everything. I want to know everything there is to know about him especially his involvement in the search for Mr Walker's wife. He knows more then he told me. I want something I can use"

"Yes sir"

Annie walked over to Banks with a puzzled look on her face.

"Why do you want to know about Mr White's involvement Alan?" he asked.

"He told me he was having an affair with Mr Walker's wife" Banks said "He knows more then he told me. I just do not trust him"

"What do you want me to do Alan?"

"You are going to help me look into those other murders Annie. We are going to start by trying to find Mr Walker and Mr Regan's notes"

Annie followed Banks out of the squad room.

Veronica crossed her arms across her chest and frowned at the two police detectives. They had been in the office several times in the last few days and she was getting tired of it.

"I am sorry" she said "I can not give you Mr Walker and Mr Regan's notes without Mr White's permission"

"Look love" Annie said giving the girl a small but unfriendly smile "There has been a series of brutal murders. In order to solve this case we need to have a look at those notes"

"I am sorry but I can't help you"

"Can't or won't?" Banks asked out of annoyance "Mr White is not hear right now. He is sitting in our jail cell. Unless you do as we ask you may find yourself in jail along with him"

"Are you threatening me Chief Inspector?" Veronica asked.

"No it is just a warning. Mr White would want you to help us"

Veronica gave a harsh laugh.

"Do you really think I would help the police after the way you treated Mr White?" she said.

"Your boss has not been very honest with us" Annie said "It would be in his best interests if you gave us those notes"

"You coppers are a royal pain in the butt. You know that don't you?"

"We are told all the time," Banks said as he and Annie followed Veronica to Mr White's office.

"I don't see what you expect to learn from these" Veronica said handing Banks the notes.

"We hope to find some answers," Banks said.

Chapter Seven

DC`s Jackman and Templeton discovered that a friend of the family was interviewed after Mrs Walker had been reported missing by her family. Sandy Bell was Mrs Walker's closest friend. She lived just down the road from the Walkers. The DC`s were lucky to find out that she was still living in the same location. Sandy agreed to talk to them. She was a tall, thin woman with the reddest hair and the greenest eyes. The DC`s could tell she was wearing contacts.

"You told me on the phone that you were looking into what happened with Grace" Sandy said sitting down and pointed to a couch in the corner inviting the detectives to sit.

"We believe there is a connection to what happened to your friend and the most recent murders" DC Jackman said taking a seat.

"What connection?" Sandy asked.

"We found the body of Mrs Walker ma`m" DC Templeton said walking over to a corner of the room.

DC Jackman glared at him. Why did he have to blurt it out like that?

"You found Grace's body?" Sandy cried, "I do not understand"

"I am sorry to have to tell you this but we found several bodies buried at that old farm" DC Jackman said trying to calm Sandy down "One of them was your friend Grace"

"Oh my god"

"She was chopped into several pieces," DC Templeton said.

"Kevin!" DC Jackman said shocked.

"What?" DC Templeton said, "I thought Mrs Bell needed to know"

"I don't think Sandy wanted to know the gruesome details. Go and get Sandy a glass of water"

DC Templeton grumbled on his way to the kitchen.

"Sorry about that" DC Jackman said.

"The last time I saw Grace was the night before she disappeared" Sandy said "She told me of her plan to leave James"

"What did she tell you?"

"She told me she met someone and she was planning on running away. When I heard she had vanished I assumed James found out about her plans and stopped her somehow"

"Did you think he killed Grace?"

"He did suspect that Grace was having an affair so yes I suspected James did something to her"

"Did you confront James?"

"Yes I did but he swore he did not know she planned on running away with her lover"

"Did you believe him?"

"No. Up until now I believed he killed Grace and hid her body somewhere"

"Why did you think James killed his wife?"

"James used to hit her. He had a nasty temper especially after he had been drinking. He even pushed Grace down the stairs once"

"Was Grace hurt?"

"She had to go to the hospital"

DC Jackman smiled grimly.

"Thank you Sandy" she said standing up.

Later the two DC`s were in Banks office telling the DCI what they had learned from Sandy. The Chief Inspector was very interested in what they had learned.

"This is very interesting in deed" Banks said "Sandy just proved that Mr White was telling the truth when he said he was having an affair with James Walker's wife. Did Sandy know Grace was having an affair with Mr White?"

"I don't think Grace told her sir" DC Jackman said.

"It sounds as though Grace was trying to get away from a bad marriage. We need to know more about the Walker's marriage. You two need to go and have a little chat with the Walker sisters and see if they know something about this affair and also find out more about the night their mother disappeared. Roger Walker saw something that night. I think he might have seen Grace murdered"

"Do you want us to also talk to Mr White sir?"

"No let me handle him. DS Hatchley is looking into Mr White's background"

"Yes sir"

Just then there was a knock on the door and a PC popped her head around the office door.

"Sir DS Hatchley is looking for you," the PC said.

Chapter Eight

DS Hatchley looked up as Banks came walking towards his desk. The sergeant had a big smile on his face.

"Sir" he said, "You are not going to believe what I found out. The day that Mr Walker's wife disappeared she was seen arguing with Walker's brother"

"About what?"

"About her affair with Mr White. Roger threatened to kill her and Mr White"

"Any witnesses to the fight?"

"Only Mr White sir. He had to pull Roger off"

Banks did not like the sound of this. This fight made Roger look guilty.

"Was Mr White and Roger questioned about this fight?" Banks asked.

"Mr White was sir" Hatchley said "However Roger was no where to be found"

Roger probably was out of it either after witnessing the murder or after he killed Grace. Banks did not want to think that Roger could do those awful things.

"Something else sir" Hatchley said, "Mr White was the one who reported Grace missing"

"The next day?" Banks asked.

"No sir the night she disappeared"

Banks was puzzled. According to Mr White he did not report Grace missing until Mr Walker came into the office frantic. Mr White had lied but why?

"Have Mr White brought into the interview room," Banks said, "He was dishonest with me and I want to know why"

Mr White looked rather annoyed about being brought back to the interview room. He glared at the DCI and his sergeant.

"This is getting rather tiresome" Mr White snapped, "I want my lawyer"

"That is your right Mr White" Banks said "However we are not charging you with anything. We are here because we found out some rather interesting facts"

"Such as?"

"My sergeant has been doing some digging and has found out you had to break up a fight between Grace Walker and Roger Walker"

"You had no right to pry into things that are not your business"

"I am sorry Mr White. This is a murder investigation. When someone has not told us the whole truth we get suspiosious"

"Roger knew about your affair with Grace Walker" DS Hatchley said.

"This is important because?" Mr White said.

"We think Roger saw something that night" Banks said.

"The man is out of his head. Who knows what he knew or saw"?

"He went mad after witnessing Grace's murder am I right Mr White?"

"I do not know what you are talking about?"

Mr White laughed.

"This is insane" he said, "The man has always been strange. If anyone is the killer he is"

"Why would he chop Grace into pieces with an axe?" Banks asked.

"He knew about the murderer who killed his family. Roger may have wanted to make it look like his brother's wife was killed by this man"

"Possible. It just seems strange to me that Roger would think about murder after finding out about your affair with Grace"

"Roger did threaten her. Come on. You do not think I killed her"

"No Mr White. The problem is Roger is too far-gone to say anything in his defence if it is true he killed Grace. He saw something that night and you know what it is. We know you reported Grace missing that night. I suspect you knew what happened to her"

Mr White's dark eyes turned into sparks.

"There is no way you are going to lay the blame on me!" he cried standing up "I am out of here"

"Sit down!" DS Hatchley commanded.

"Mr White" Banks said, "You joined the search for Grace because you knew what happened and you felt guilty. You tell us everything right now"

Mr White went very pale and his eyes went huge.

"It is a night I want to forget" he said, "I still have nightmares about that night"

Chapter Nine

After she had received the visit from the two police detectives Sandy Bell hurried to the Walker home. She was a little upset by the detectives' questions. Anne met her at the door and frowned when she saw the look on Sandy's face.

"Sandy what is wrong?" Anne asked.

"I just had a visit by two detectives" Sandy said "They were asking a lot of questions about your mother"

"Was one of them DCI Banks?"

"No. They said they were DC`s whatever that means"

Anne led Sandy to the living room and invited her to sit down.

"What did you tell them?" Anne asked.

"I just said that I suspected your father had killed your mother after she disappeared" Sandy said.

"You did not say anything about my uncle Roger did you?"

"No of course not"

"Good. The police must not know that we found my uncle covered in blood that night. He has been through enough these last few years"

Sandy swallowed nervously before she asked Anne:

"You don't really think Roger killed your mother do you?"

Anne sighed.

"I do not really know what happened that night" she said, "All I know is that Roger had blood all over him and was talking nonsense"

"The poor man. He must have seen something really bad that night. I bet it was something that would have made anyone go mad," Sandy said softly.

"It is all my father's fault. If he had not been so mean to my mother none of this would have happened"

"Your father was looking into your mother's disappearance I understand"

"Yes. He was just trying to clear his own guilt. I am glad he is dead"

Sandy did not like what she heard.

"Your father may have been mean" she said, "However no one deserves being killed in such a horrible manner not even your father"

Chapter Ten

That evening Banks and Annie were looking through the notes in Banks office. The other detectives had gone home so it was quiet. Annie was feeling nervous. Every noise was making her jump. She knew it was because she was attacked the other night. Banks watched Annie with concern as she jumped at a sudden noise.

"Annie are you okay?" Banks asked.

Annie laughed and tried to smile to hide her nervousness.

"I am sorry Alan" Annie said, "I am just being silly"

"You were attacked the other night. Anyone in your position would be on edge"

"I know but I should not be jumping at every small noise. I am a DI"

"Hey it is okay. I am right here"

Annie smiled grateful she was not alone in the office.

"Find anything?" Banks asked changing the subject.

"No nothing yet" Annie said "All I read so far is a bunch of theories Mr Walker had about his wife's death"

"That does not sound promising. I was hoping for a little more"

"He did however talk to the officer in charge of the case surrounding his wife's disappearance"

Banks came alert when he heard that.

"Does he mention who this officer was?" Banks asked.

"A DI Williams" Annie said.

Before Banks could respond there was a loud banging sound coming from downstairs. Annie looked towards the noise.

"What the hell was that?" she asked.

"I do not know" Banks said, "You stay here Annie. I will go and check it out"

"Can I come with you Alan? I do not want to be by myself"

"It is okay Annie. It is probably nothing. I will be back in a few minutes I promise"

Banks left his office and Annie went and stood in the corner and picked up a letter opener from the desk. She knew it would not do any good against an intruder but she felt better knowing she had something in her hand. Minutes passed and Banks did not return. _It should have nit taken him this long to check out that noise_ Annie thought _something must have happened. _Annie walked out of Banks office and through the squad room to the stairs. It was strangely dark as though someone had turned off the lights.

"Alan" Annie called as she walked down the stairs "Alan are you here? What is going on? Alan"

Banks did not answer. Annie felt a chill run down her spine. She felt as though she was the heroine in a horror movie she must have seen on TV once. Just as she rounded the front desk Annie saw Banks. It looked like someone surprised him.

"Alan" Annie "Oh my god!"

Suddenly someone grabbed her and put a hand over her mouth before she could cry out.

"You are coming with me bitch" a voice said, "You refused to stay out of this and now you are going to pay"

Annie felt herself being dragged out of the station and too a car. She was tossed into the trunk and duck tapped and blindfolded. The DI knew this was the same man who attacked her the other night.

"What do you want with me?" Annie asked.

"No questions DI Cabbot" the man said "You better be quiet or I will have to punish you"

The trunk door was closed.

The man drove until her reached the abandoned farm. He opened the car trunk and dragged the female police detective to the abandoned barn. He had to think of what to do with her. It would not be long before the rest of the coppers discovered she was missing and come looking for her. The sooner he got rid of her and disposed of her body the better.

Chapter Eleven

Banks felt someone shake him. For a second he did not know where he was or what was happening.

"Stop it!" he commanded.

"Sir" a familiar voice said "Sir are you alright? Sir"

"Who is it?"

"Sir it is me DS Hatchley"

Banks opened his eyes and found he was staring into the worried face of his sergeant.

"Jim" Banks said sitting up "What happened? What is going on? Where is DI Cabbot?"

"DI Cabbot is nowhere to be found sir. You were hit on the head. You were found this morning by a PC just coming on duty"

"This morning! You mean I was out all night?"

"It looks that way"

Banks got to his feet and found that everything was spinning slightly. The DCI nearly collapsed.

"Easy sir" DS Hatchley said grabbing the Chief Inspector's arm "Let me take you to the hospital"

"No time" Banks said, "Annie could be in a lot of trouble"

"Sir you are in no condition to go look for her. We need to get you to the hospital"

The look that Banks gave his sergeant made him back down. It was really no secret how Banks felt about DI Cabbot. DS Hatchley helped Banks upstairs.

Detective Superintendent Gristhorpe was shocked when he saw DS Hatchley and a dazed DCI Banks come into the squad room. He hurried over and helped the Chief Inspector into a chair. He looked Banks with alarm.

"Alan!" he cried "What in the world?"

"We had an intruder last night sir" Banks said, "They surprised me"

"Who was it?"

"I did not get a good look at their face"

Banks almost leaped out of his seat.

"Sir Annie has been taken hostage. Who knows what he is doing to her. We got to find her!" Banks said.

Gristhorpe pushed Banks back down into the chair.

"No Alan" Gristhorpe said firmly "You have to get to the hospital. I will organize a search"

"Sir please" Banks pleaded.

"No Alan and that is an order"

Banks lowered his eyes but not before Gristhorpe noticed the look in the DCI`s eyes.

"Alan" he said "I know that you and Annie have a close friendship and that you want to find her but it would not be a good idea since you two are close"

"I understand sir" Banks said.

However Banks secretly planned on finding Annie himself. He was not going to sit back and do nothing while some nutcase did god knows what to her.

Chapter Twelve

Annie could not see a thing because she was blindfolded. It felt cold. Where in the world had that nutcase brought her and was Alan okay? The last time she saw him Banks was unconscious. Was he just knocked out or a lot worse? Annie knew Banks would do anything he could to find her. He owed her after she had saved his life by dragging him out of his cottage that had been set on fire by Annie's crazy boyfriend. Annie did not want to think what this nutcase would do to her. She was sure that the man who took her hostage was their killer.

"Hello" she called out "Anyone there?"

There was no answer so Annie suspected she was alone at least for the time being. Annie hoped she was found soon. If this killer was smart he would want to get rid of her and depose of her body before the cops were on to him. Annie tried not to cry. She was a copper and she had to be strong.

Banks was sitting alone in his office in the dark. He was trying not to think about Annie alone and afraid. The idea someone hurting his friend set his teeth on edge. They may not be girlfriend/boyfriend anymore but Banks still cared for her. Just as he was about to go out for a smoke a PC knocked on his door.

"Sir" the PC said, "This note was just delivered"

"Did you see who it was?" Banks asked.

"No sir"

"Let me have it"

The PC handed the note to Banks. It was just a few lines and it was unsigned. Banks however had no dought who sent it. He read the note butterflies in his stomach:

_If you do not back off this case your precious DI will die and I promise you her death will not be pleasant. This note is a warning especially for DCI Banks. This is your only warning_.

Banks felt rage. He did not like to be threatened. There was no way he was going to back off this case. Annie's life was in jeopardy and his responsibility. He was going to find the DI and he was going to bring her back safe and sound.

THE END OF PART 2

I welcome reviews.

Question: Will DCI Banks get to Annie in time? Can the killer be stopped?


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